One of the sessions at this year’s Environmental, Energy and Resources Law Summit in Winnipeg will look at the environment by way of financial markets. Green investing isn’t just about virtue-signalling any more.

Corporate counsel are strategic partners in their companies. And one way they can show their worth is by boning up on Canada’s international trade agreements. Knowing how to make trade deals – or even international sanctions – add to the bottom line is good business.

Cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin are in the financial spotlight. While analysts debate when the next Bitcoin bubble will burst, more financial institutions, including the Bank of Canada, are looking to regulate cryptocurrencies or incorporate them into the current financial system.

Blockchain is the most disruptive thing the world has seen since the early days of the internet, says one Canadian lawyer. For lawyers, “smart contracts” created with blockchain could be the way of the future.

Big Data is big business these days. The Competition Bureau put out a discussion paper this fall, seeking to open a conversation about the implications Big Data has for competition law. “Cautious” might be a byword for the Bureau’s approach.

Proposed changes to the Integrity Regime for corporations appear to be a response to business and industry concerns about the severe consequences for companies that rely on government contracts who are found guilty of wrongdoing.

The U.S. reopened negotiations on NAFTA and a whole bunch of Canadian companies were fine with that, saying it’s time the somewhat out of date trade provisions were reworked for the current climate. Heather Innes of LexSage Professional Corporation has some tips for preparing your company for NAFTA 2.0.

Donald Trump has been president of the United States for just eight months but many Canadian lawyers have already started to see the impact of his protectionist policies on their practices. And that impact will likely continue to affect Canadian businesses and their lawyers as more policies are unveiled.

The negotiation of the bi-national dispute settlement mechanism in the Canada/United States Free Trade Agreement of 1988 is one of those David and Goliath stories diplomats like to tell over long lunches.